Good News and Bon Voyage!

Well, we took our little Lucas to the pediatric cardiologist today, and good news was in store for us. The doctor determined that Lucas has an innocent heart murmur. There is nothing structurally wrong with his heart. Whew!!! What a relieft!

And we leave for our family vacation to Disneyworld tomorrow! Actually in about 12 hours! We are going to celebrate my mom's 50th birthday. Happy Birthday Mommy (even though it's not actually until August 15). I am sure a world of excitement, fun, and chaos awaits us in Florida and we just can't wait!!!!!!

What's Next?????

Well, I think that someone upstairs is trying very hard to see just how much stress my family can handle before cracking. I took Lucas and Thomas to the doctor today to follow up on some ear infections that they had last week. During the last visit, the doctor thought Lucas might have a slight heart murmur. Today's visit confirmed the murmur and the doctor actually thinks that there is no way it can be an innocent heart murmur--that there is something structurally wrong. The doctor's suspicions are:

Ventricular septal defect (VSD):This is the most common type of congenital heart disease. In the case of VSD, the wall between the two largest chambers of the heart (the ventricles) does not finish forming.

OR

Atrial septal defect (ASD): The wall between the two entry chambers of the heart (the atria) does not finish forming.

Of course, this is the pediatrician's opinion and we haven't seen the pediatric cardiologist yet. We are getting a referral to see one, and we will know more at that time. Until then, we'll cross our fingers and pray our hearts off that his little heart is okay.

On a happier note, Kevin was asking me all kinds of questions about Lucas and we got to talking about all kinds of things. A couple of his responses were just too cute.

Brandi: "What is the meaning of life Kevin?"
Kevin: "Well, I all I know is that God, the sun and the rain makes things come to life, I don't know about the meaning of it."

Brandi: "What is love Kevin?"
Kevin: "You and Dad and my brothers. Plus a big hug and kiss."

Kevin: "Who is God?"
Brandi: "Who do you think he is?"
Kevin: "I think he is in my heart."

Children are such a blessing!

Our Friendly Visits

This week we were fortunate enough to have a couple of visitors. On Friday night, we got to have the Seidl's up. Kevin just had to sit next to his Great Grandma Jan. Then on Saturday, Ryan's girlfriend's sister brought her son (Brody) up to visit the boys. My boys were a little too loud for the poor guy, but luckily, Brody found a friend in the quiet little Lucas. Mema and Papa (Paul's parents) also came by Saturday night to see the boys after their trip to Las Vegas. They had a great time, and Marianne won $800!

On Monday, the beautiful McKenzie (and Cortney) graced our presence. Kevin poked her a couple of times, so naturally, Thomas followed his lead. However, he poked her over and over again. Poor McKenzie just stared at him, probably thinking: "Wait until I'm old enough to poke you back!" Finally, Papa and Grandma Slade and Linda came over today and we all had a blast. We went to McDonald's and played outside for hours. The boys had a wonderful time, and I think the grown-ups did too! Of course, Grandma Traci, Ryan, and Brittani were also some of the fun visitors as well.

Here are a couple of pictures of our fun times:

Lucas, Kevin, Baby Kenzie, and Thomas

Brody, Lucas, Kevin, and Thomas

Thomas, eating a twinkie.


Brittani and Kevin playing with his tools.

Grandma and the twins, swinging away.

The two Tom's.